Valance and curtain or drapery supports



Oct. 17, 1967 J. H. BIERLICH VALANCE AND CURTAIN OR DRAPERY SUPPORTS Filed Sept. 50, 1963 INVENTOR: Mums fizmuawm If": M ""7 United States Patent 3,347,304 VALANCE AND CURTAIN 0R DRAPERY SUPPORTS Johannes H. Bierlich, 15 ()resundshoj, Copenhagen, Denmark Filed Sept. 30, 1963, Ser. No. 312,694 Claims. (Cl. 160-19) The present invention relates to valance and curtain or drapery supports and more particularly to cornice structures adapted to hide curtain rods, venetian blind top bars or the like accessories which extend across a window opening. The present invention is an improvement of the invention disclosed in my US. Patent No. 3,111,162 filed Aug. 22, 1952.

It is a purpose of the invention to provide a curtain rail which in itself is useful or can be made useful as a support for an elongated strap defining a cornice board.

A further purpose of the invention is to provide a curtain rail structure including a curtain rail the ends of which are preshaped or easily can be preshaped on the spot to provide resilient heads operable to support and tension an elongated strap defining a cornice board in longitudinal direction.

Further purposes and advantages of the invention will appear from the following specification with reference to the accompanying drawing in which FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of one of a cornice and curtain rail structure according to the invention seen from the front side in one embodiment,

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of a modification of the structure illustrated in FIGURE 1 seen from the back side, and

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a pair of a curtain rail structure according to the invention.

In broad terms theinvention provides in one aspect a cornice and curtain rail assembly comprising supporting brackets of which one is shown in FIGURE- 1, a curtain rail 12 adapted to be supported on said supporting brackets and having its ends of which the left hand end in FIGURE 1 is referred to by 14 shaped in the form of resilient heads, an elongated strap 16 defining a cornice board and means generally referred to by 18 operable to clamp said elongated strap adjacent its ends to the heads to support the strap on said heads and simultaneously deform the same inwardly, thereby tensioning the strap in longitudinal direction.

While in my US. Patent No. 3,111,162 a cornice and curtain rail structure is disclosed in which resilient heads 7 are secured to or supported on the ends of the curtain rail the present invention provides as apparent from the foregoing the improvement that the resilient heads are integral with the curtain rail.

To this purpose the curtain rail must be of deformable material having a certain elasticity. In the case of metallic curtain rails of relatively hard material the heads may be shaped as a part of the manufacturing process, and the curtain rail may be, as well known from commercially available curtain rails, assembled from two parts adapted to be pushed together to obtain the necessary versatility.

In the case of metallic curtain rails of relatively soft material, the heads may be formed on the spot by bending the ends of the curtain rail, or the dealer who delivers the structure to the customer may have a simple shaping tool for bending the ends of the curtain rail into the desired configuration. In such event it is obvious that the entire length of the curtain rail necessary for a window of a predetermined width must be calculated on the basis of the width of the window plus the lengths of the curved end portions.

3,347,304 Patented Oct. 17, 1967 "ice Obviously the improvement according to the present invention has the advantage that the brackets or curve heads are no longer separate structures but integral with the curtain rail, whereby the curtain rail and cornice structure according to the present invention become still more suitable for distribution by mail order and for mounting by do-it-yourself people.

The modification of FIGURE 2 differs from the embodiment of FIGURE 1 thereby that the curtain rail bracket 10 is mounted on a top bar 20 of a venetian blind 22 and that the arcuate head 14 at the end of the curtain rail 12 is shaped in the form of an open 0 with a part 14a bent against the venetian blind bar 20.

The clamping device or member 18 for fastening the cornice board strip'16 to the curtain rail is in the form of a conveniently shaped bracket having a-portion adapted to be received in the profile of the curtain rail and a set screw or the like 18:: operable to clamp the strip 16 firmly into engagement with the curtain rail.

The cornice strip may be of any suitable material, such as veener, metal or plastic, if desired with a decorative coating on one side and may be delivered from the factory to the dealers in coils from which the strip is cut into the necessary lengths when delivered to the customers.

The curtain rail and cornice structure will not be described in more detail in the following, reference being made to my US. Patent No. 3,111,162 in which the structure is described in great detail and which is hereby made part of the disclosure of this application.

While in my US. Patent No. 3,111,162 the cornice board is suspended and prevented from sagging by being clamped to the resilient heads in such a manner that they are elastically deformed to provide a tensioning of the cornice strip, the present invention obviously utilizes the same idea but has the advantage that the heads simply are formed by the ends of the curtain rail itself.

As mentioned the curtain rail according to this invention must be of deformable material. A plurality of commercially available curtain rails of metal of different profile fulfills this requirement and can be shaped to provide resilient arcuate heads at their ends. Other commercially available curtain rails are, however, of a profile which makes them so rigid that they cannot be deformed to provide resilient heads, and in the case of such curtain rails separate resilient heads are necessary according to my US. Patent No. 3,111,162. The selection of appropriate curtain rail material and profile which renders the curtain rails applicable to the present invention will, however, be easy to those skilled in the art.

During the last years, however, synthetic resinous material or plastic has to a susbtantial extent replaced metal in the production of curtain rails. Any of the profiles used in plastic curtain rails renders a plurality of such curtain rails as presently commercially available unapplicable to the present invention due to the fact that the profiles have been designed with a view to obtaining substantial rigidness of the plastic curtain rails and prevent them from warping, and in addition hard plastic has been used.

A plurality of such commercially available plastic curtain rails may, however, easily be modified to be applicable to the present invention by using a semi-soft plastic material for the curtain rail profile and providing the necessary rigidness by means of an interior metallic reinforcement, for example by means of steel Wires or bands in a similar way as in reinforced concrete, provided the interior reinforcement allows the deformation of the ends in the manner hereinbefore described.

A modification along these lines is indicated in FIG- URE 3 where 24 is an I-profile curtain rail of a suitable plastic material, preferably a semi-soft plastic such as polyvinyl chloride with an interior reinforcement in the 3 form of two metallic wires 26 which preferably are steel wires of sufficient flexibility.

Obviously, instead of two metallic wires 26, a metallic band can be used as reinforcement which extends along the body portion of the I-profile.

It will be understood that further embodiments and modifications are possible within the scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A cornice assembly comprising supporting brackets, a curtain rail of deformable, resilient material, means operative to support said curtain rail on said supporting brackets, said cutain rail having its ends bent to provide resilient heads integral with said curtain rail, an elongated strap defining a cornice board, and means operable to clamp said elongated strap adjacent its ends to said curtain rail in position to follow the configuration of said heads in engagement with the exterior surfaces thereof and to simultaneously bend the same inwardly, whereby the resiliency of said heads will tension said strap in a longitudinal direction.

2. In combination, a curtain rail of deformable resilient material having its ends bent in the form of resilient bracket members, an elongated cornice board and means supported on said bracket members operable to clamp said elongated board adjacent its ends to said bracket members in position to follow the configuration of the bent ends of said member to engage the exterior surfaces thereof, said clamping means suspending said cornice board in substantially parallel relationship with said curtain rail to simultaneously tighten said members and thereby tension said board in a longitudinal direction.

3. The combination of a resilient and deformable curtain rail, an elongated cornice board, supporting members integral with said curtain rail formed by bending the ends thereof which supports said board, means for clamping said elongated board adjacent its ends against said supporting members, said clamping means positioning the ends of said curtain rail to follow the configuration of said supporting members in engagement with the exterior surface thereof and to maintain said board in substantially parallel relationship with said cornice board while simultaneously tensioning said board in a longitudinal 4- direction by elastic deformation of said supporting mem- 'bers.

4. The combination of a curtain rail of resilient and deformable material having end portions which are bent, said end portion providing resilient supporting members, an elongated band-shaped strap, and clamping means for holding said elongated strap adjacent its ends on said resilient members in substantially parallel relationship with said curtain rail said clamping means holding the curtain rail in position to follow the configuration of the ends in engagement with the exterior surfaces of the end portions and simultaneously tensioning said strip in a longitudinal direction by elastic deformation of said resilient members.

5. For use as a support for an elongated cornice board, in combination, a curtain rail of resilient and deformable material having its ends deformed by bending to provide resilient heads at the ends of said rail and clamping members operable to be supported on said resilient heads said clamping members bringing the ends of said rail into engagement with the interior surfaces of said board to tension said board in a longitudinal direction and to simultaneously clamp the ends of said cornice board to said resilient heads.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,239,364 9/1917 Dinkel et a1. 248-252 2,727,272 12/1955 Hankin et al 1694 X 2,823,743 2/ 1958 Isaac *39 2,985,907 5/ 1961 Duncan 1694 2,998,062 8/1961 Bixby 160-39 3,111,162 11/1963 Bierlich 16-94 FOREIGN PATENTS 602,154 5/ 1957 Great Britain.

718,173 11/1954 Great Britain.

873,055 1/ 1959 Great Britain.

93,885 5/ 1959 Norway. 171,283 11/ 1934 Switzerland.

DAVID J. WILLIAMOWSKY, Primary Examiner.

D. L. TAYLOR, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A CORNICE ASSEMBLY COMPRISING SUPPORTING BRACKETS, A CURTAIN RAIL OF DEFORMABLE, RESILIENT MATERIAL, MEANS OPERATIVE TO SUPPORT SAID CURTAIN RAIL ON SAID SUPPORTING BRACKETS, SAID CURTAIN RAIL HAVING ITS ENDS BENT TO PROVIDE RESILIENT HEADS INTEGRAL WITH SAID CURTAIN RAIL, AN ELONGATED STRAP DEFINING A CORNICE BOARD, AND MEANS OPERABLE TO CLAMP SAID ELONGATED STRAP ADJACENT ITS ENDS TO SAID CURTAIN RAIL IN POSITION TO FOLLOW THE CONFIGURATION OF SAID HEADS IN ENGAGEMENT WITH THE EXTERIOR SURFACES THEREOF AND TO SIMULTANEOUSLY BEND THE SAME INWARDLY, WHEREBY THE RESILIENCY OF SAID HEADS WILL TENSION SAID STRAP IN A LONGITUDINAL DIRECTION. 